


Farewell

by dwarrowdams



Series: Tolkientober [20]
Category: The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Gen, Tolkientober
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:47:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27269698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dwarrowdams/pseuds/dwarrowdams
Summary: Aragorn visits his mother's grave before departing with the Fellowship.  Written for Day 8 of Tolkientober (a favorite scene).
Series: Tolkientober [20]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949476





	Farewell

**Author's Note:**

> So this has been sitting half-finished in my Tolkientober Google Doc for a while because I started it when I was too emotional to finish it.
> 
> But better late than never, so here it is!
> 
> I always liked the scene in the Extended Edition when Aragorn visits his mom's grave—it's so tender and as someone who's also a member of the Dead Moms Club, it means a lot to me (especially since my mom was a big Tolkien nerd—she actually owned copies of the books and the first two movies [RotK came out after she died, so no copy of that], which was a big deal because she almost always borrowed things from the library rather than buying them).

He might not visit her grave often, but she was never far from his thoughts.

Aragorn knelt before the slab of stone that bore his mother’s name, nodding reverently to the statue beside it. Gently, he brushed aside the dirt, leaves, and other debris that had accumulated on the headstone. The Elves would never intentionally keep her grave in disrepair, but time passed more slowly for them, so Aragorn made sure to visit every so often to clear off her headstone and bring her some fresh flowers.

He hadn’t had time to make as nice of a bouquet as he wanted, but he hoped that the small bit of blooms and greenery he had collected would serve. Should he return, he would honor his mother properly with the finest flowers he could gather. He placed the bouquet beside her headstone, arranging it in a way he hoped was pleasing.

He closed his eyes, bowed his head slightly, and sent a prayer to her spirit, asking her to help him on this quest and to guide his feet onto the right path. As usual, he heard no response, but felt something warm stir in his chest: a sign that her spirit had heard him and would continue to watch over him on his travels. Others might think it foolish to linger here when his mother’s spirit no longer dwelt here, but Aragorn still remembered his mother’s promise.

She had vowed to watch over him always, whether it was from this life or beyond, and Aragorn knew that his mother was a woman of her word.

He laid his hand on the statue in thanks and whispered a word of farewell before gathering his things and departing the grove, hoping desperately that he would be able to return again.

**Author's Note:**

> Real talk: I was super not feeling my Ringbearer piece and I wanted to post something I was happy with, so that piece will show up in the coming days (probably after the challenge is technically over, but not too long after because it's already halfway finished, if not more). But the important thing is that I'm going to finish the challenge, which is an accomplishment for my ADHD self.
> 
> Please comment if you enjoyed!
> 
> Tumblr: dwarrowdams  
> Twitter: @_tenderqueer


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